George Washington, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Washington’s Farewell Address

Single Session Class | Registration opens 8/28/2026 9:00 AM EDT

11/11/2026 (one day)
11:00 AM-12:30 PM EDT on Wed
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11/11/2026

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Washington’s Farewell Address

Single Session Class | Registration opens 8/28/2026 9:00 AM EDT

At the end of his second term, Washington surprised Americans by publishing his

Farewell message in a newspaper. The President called for unity among “citizens by

birth or choice,” advocated moderation, defended religious pluralism, proposed a foreign

policy of independence (not isolation), and proposed that education is essential to

democracy. He established the precedent for the peaceful transfer of power.

 

George Washington’s Farewell Address was a prophetic letter about the forces

Washington feared could destroy our democracy: hyper-partisanship, excessive debt,

and foreign wars. Once celebrated as civic scripture, more widely reprinted than the

Declaration of Independence, the Farewell Address is now almost forgotten. Yet, its

message remains starkly relevant.


John Avlon

John Avlon is an award-winning journalist, author, news anchor and media executive.

He is a former CNN senior political analyst and anchor, editor-in-chief of The Daily

Beast, and the 2024 Democratic congressional nominee in New York’s First District. He

currently hosts a solutions journalism podcast on The Bulwark called “How to Fix It” and

serves as the Chairman of Citizens Union, New York’s oldest good government group.

He was chief speechwriter for Mayor Rudy Giuliani; he wrote eulogies for the hundreds

of First Responders murdered in the attack of September 11th and his essay on the

attack, “The Resilient City”, won acclaim as “the single best essay written in the wake of

9/11”. Avlon has appeared on the Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Real Time with Bill

Maher, and The Daily Show as well as on CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, NPR and C-Span. 

Avlon is the author of seven books including Washington’s Farewell and Lincoln and the Fight for Peace.  His newest book, Theodore Roosevelt’s Guide to Life, is slated to be released this coming March.